Introduction: Civil Society in the Era of Globalization—Emerging Concerns as a Social Welfare Provider

In view of the growing interest among the academia, government, international organizations, and media in the present globalized society, with chapters covering Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan, the book makes an attempt to examine and critically analyse the issues with regard to the development and growth of civil society organizations (CSOs) and their contribution to social welfare across South Asian countries. The term “civil society” is the most contested issue, because many different interpretations exist that are not well connected to and/or articulated with the other definitions and concepts. However, there are constant global challenges that hamper the performance of the third sector in the contemporary globalized world. Given the scenario, this book will provide an opportunity to present the new challenges facing civil society organizations in providing social welfare activities that intend to show the nexus between sustainable roles and cope with the challenges for third sector organizations in the many countries in South Asia. It is worth a mention that nothing much has been written about the contribution of civil society towards the social welfare sector, especially a comparative perspective focusing on South Asian countries. Given the social-political and cultural development of South Asian countries, the role of civil society as a third sector in development has been more interesting and promising in the recent past.